INDIANAPOLIS — A little rain in Central Indiana wasn't going to put a damper on another quick-paced, productive day of offseason practice for the Indianapolis Colts.
The Colts on Wednesday had their fourth day of OTA practices at the Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center; the second of which that's been available to viewed in its entirety by the media (for Day 2 Practice Notes, click here).
Wednesday's session began outdoors, but moved into the indoor facility a few minutes after the start of the team portion of practice began after a rainstorm moved into the area.
But the weather didn't affect the team's efforts to support those affected by a shooting last Friday at Noblesville West Middle School. The Colts players, coaches and front office personnel out at practice on Wednesday were all wearing white T-shirts honoring shooting victims Ella Whistler, 13, and teacher Jason Seaman, both of whom survived the incident:
Here were the key takeaways from the day:
— Last week, several noteworthy players did not participate in the portion of practice open to the media. This week, a few of those guys were seen out on the field participating at various levels, including tackle Anthony Castonzo, tackle/guard Jack Mewhort and cornerbacks Nate Hairston and Quincy Wilson.
— Those I didn't see during the open portion today included quarterback Andrew Luck, running back Marlon Mack, guard Jeremy Vujnovich, center Deyshawn Bond, tight end Erik Swoope, wide receiver Krishawn Hogan, linebacker Darius Leonard and safeties Clayton Geathers and Malik Hooker.
— As for Luck, head coach Frank Reich clarified after practice that the still-rehabbing quarterback had his workout schedule shuffled around a bit to maximize his and the team's time better. Reich said Luck still has the "same routine;" he just wasn't out on the field with the team today.
— Leonard, meanwhile, is rehabbing an injury (Reich didn't say what it was) and is working his way back on the field as soon as possible. The second-round pick is staying in-tuned in the classroom, however, Reich said.
— With Castonzo back in the fold at left tackle Wednesday, we saw a continuance of last week's first-team offensive line at every other position: Quenton Nelson at left guard, Ryan Kelly at center, Matt Slauson at right guard and Austin Howard at right tackle. Denzelle Good, who filled in for Castonzo at left tackle last week, also was seen working in with the first team at times on Wednesday, too.
— A second unit working along the offensive line included Good at left tackle, Mewhort at left guard, Joe Haeg at center, Braden Smith at right guard and Jared Machorro at right tackle.
— Staying with the big fellas, only on defense, the Colts showed a base first-team defensive line look that included Jabaal Sheard and Tarell Basham at defensive end and Al Woods (one-technique) and Denico Autry (three-technique) at defensive tackle. But, again, just like last Wednesday's practice, lots of other players were seen filling in up front, like fourth-year veteran Rakeem Nunez-Roches, who appeared to be spelling Woods at the one-tech spot. Margus Hunt (defensive tackle) and John Simon (defensive end) were also rotating in and out.
— It appeared the three base linebackers stayed the same from last week, too: Najee Goode at the WILL, Anthony Walker at the MIKE and Antonio Morrison at the SAM. Tyrell Adams also had plenty of reps at linebacker.
— Geathers and Hooker being out continued to open the door for others to step in on Wednesday at the safety position, including T.J. Green and Ronald Martin. Pierre Desir, Kenny Moore II, Nate Hairston and Quincy Wilson were the primary cornerbacks seen rotating in and out.
— With Mack out, the running back position is certainly fluid. It was veteran Robert Turbin getting early snaps with the top unit on Wednesday, but Nyheim Hines (who was all over the field again, like last week), Christine Michael and Josh Ferguson were also getting plenty of reps with the ones, too. Jordan Wilkins got a few snaps here and there, as well.
— Early on in team drills, it was a good day for the defense — particularly the safeties. Matthias Farley logged two interceptions in about a 10-minute span, one of which was tipped at the line, the other of which was caused by heavy pressure up front on the quarterback. George Odum also had good awareness to earn a fumble recovery during a red zone drill, while Ronald Martin had an interception on a ball that bounced off a receiver's hands during 7-on-7s.
